NATIONAL CITY 
It’s often said that everyone deserves a second chance, but what about a third or fourth?

Students enrolled in the Juvenile Court and Community Schools program run by the San Diego County Office of Education are given the opportunity to earn it.

About 25 students graduated June 27 from South County campuses in front of more than 100 friends and family members at the South County Regional Education Center in National City.

The program is a fully accredited educational curriculum for school-age youth who are either court dependents or referred by social services, the Probation Department or a school district in the county.

Students are able to work at their own pace and use the same curriculum and textbooks as traditional high schools.

Many students are considered at-risk teens, expelled from local school districts, convicted of crimes or facing personal hardships.

“Unfortunately or fortunately you’ve made some decisions that were probably not the most positive, yet you continue to persevere,” Principal Roberto Carrillo said. “It’s giving you a sense of pride and character that no one can take away.”

Jim Moreno, a community programs poetry teacher, is an example to his students by graduating in the bottom third of his high school class and eventually earning multiple degrees.

Moreno said each graduate is capable of transforming ignorance.

“I’m looking down the line and I’m wondering, who’s going to be the next Rigoberta Menchu, the woman from Guatemala who won the Nobel Peace prize. … Who’s going to be the next Jimmy Santiago Baca, who went to prison on a nine-year sentence, completely illiterate, learned to read and write in solitary confinement and because of his poetry was released early?”

Viridiana Word, a program teacher since 2007, said working with these students gives her a chance to make a difference.

“We’re here to lift them up,” she said. “It can be really hard, but it’s possible and it’s definitely worth every minute of it.”

Word, 30, said the students come from various backgrounds and circumstances — some from gangs, in and out of juvenile hall, drug and alcohol use.

“A lot of people in their lives have let them down, which is why they’re here to begin with,” Word said. “These students are the ones that fell through the cracks. You have to really understand where they’re coming from.”

Veronica Prieto graduated from South Bay Technical Academy and was a student of Word.

She said a defining moment in her life was when she felt like she hit rock bottom at age 16.

“Going to school was a struggle,” Prieto said. “Instead I wanted to go out and have fun. I didn’t think I would see the day, but I’m pretty proud of myself.”

Prieto, 18, plans to attend Southwestern College in the fall.

“I hope to study criminal justice,” she said, adding she’d like to transfer to San Diego State University.

Word said that sometimes it takes proving to the students that as a teacher you’re willing to go the extra mile, which she has, providing clothes and finding shelter for students, among other things.

“It’s not part of the job description, but it is part of the job — it does come with the territory,” she said. “The teacher sometimes is the most constant thing that they know. When the parent is absent, you’re it. Once you get to that point, you know that the student trusts you.”

Angel Hernandez, who graduated from the National City campus, dropped out his senior year of high school but decided to finish.

Hernandez, 20, has a younger brother and 8-month-old daughter for whom he wants to be a role model.

Word said that while the sacrifice is great, the gain is without comparison.

“One day I had a student call me and say, ‘I just checked the mail and I want you to know that I passed my GED and you’re the first one to know,’ ” she said. “Those are the rewards — knowing that you helped someone out that somebody else gave up on.”

Senior Director Jose Manuel Villarreal told students to never forget their struggle as they move forward.

“You’ll be tested,” he said. “The question is will you make the right decision? I hope you don’t forget where you’ve come from and I hope you have a vision for where you’re going.”